This paper explores the links between concepts of the learning organisation and emotional intelligence.
Many arguments relating to the learning organisation, particularly those of the influential writer Peter
Senge, propose that the practitioner needs to take seriously the relational dynamics of people in the
workplace in order, effectively, to remove some of the ‘barriers’ to collective learning. To some extent, the
growing interest in emotional intelligence can be understood as a continuation of this theme. This paper
explores the potential for emotional intelligence to be used as a set of tools and ideas to achieve some of
the ideals of the learning organisation. The paper provides an exposition of key emotional intelligence
concepts, and considers case study material in assessing the utility of these concepts for the human
resource development practitioner. The paper concludes by considering how the growing interest in
emotional intelligence might signal a shift in the character of organisational life in years to come.